Apes Quote by Thomas A. Edison
“When we learn how to store electricity, we will cease being apes ourselves; until then we are tailless orangutans. You see, we should utilize natural forces and thus get all of our power. Sunshine is a form of energy, and the winds and the tides are manifestations of energy. Do we use them? Oh, no! We burn up wood and coal, as renters burn up the front fence for fuel. We live like squatters, not as if we owned the property.”
About This Quote
Source Speech: Public lecture on electricity, 1903
Human progress depends on mastering natural energy sources; until we store electricity, we remain primitive.
In simple terms: We need to store power to advance beyond basic survival.
Key Takeaway
Invest in energy storage technologies.
Themes
technology
energy
progress
humanity
Mood
optimistic
urgent
Type
inspirational
technological
When to use this quote
- home power systems
- grid modernization
- off‑grid living
- climate mitigation
Key Concepts
electricity storage
renewable resources
infrastructure
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we make large‑scale storage affordable?
- What societal changes follow widespread clean energy?
A Different Perspective
Storing electricity is costly and technologically challenging.
![“Energy is the key to prosperity, to security. And until we [in US] start tapping our domestic, conventional and alternative sources to energy, we're never going to get there.” quote by Sarah Palin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/93e/sarah-palin-1441_alternatives_energy-is-the-key-to-prosperity-to-secur_2059350.jpg)
![“Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this [step by step, from humans to apes to monkeys to lemurs] - leading us insensibly from the crown and summit of the animal creation down to creatures, from which there is but a step, as it seems, to the…” quote by Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/f0b/thomas-huxley-1183_animal_perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us_3051.jpg)
